Field of the Invention
The present invention concerns a portable airbag system for people, in particular for the protection of people in the case of avalanches or falls.
Description of Related Art
Airbags for the protection of people during avalanches are described in the patent applications: DE 201 06 766U1; GB-A-2 162 129; DE 12 68 999B; US 2005/130516; U.S. Pat. No. 4,635,754; U.S. Pat. No. 6,158,380; EP0957994B1; U.S. Pat. No. 6,220,909. Some of the known systems of personal airbags have an inflatable bag which deploys around the neck and the head and in front on the thorax of the user so as to protect the head and the ribcage of the user. During an avalanche, such a configuration also permits a space to be created in front of the user, allowing him to breathe when he is buried in the snow. So as to be able to deploy towards the front, the known airbags have a relatively complex storage system with parts disposed in shoulder straps and also on the back of the user, necessitating great modifications on the shoulder straps and the whole of the backpack, able to bring about a lack of comfort or a shape which is not very ergonomic, and also complications in the manufacture of the product. The configuration limits the possibilities of combining the airbag with other elements which are useful to the walker, mountaineer or worker, the shoulder straps and other parts containing the airbag having to be left free and exposed towards the exterior. Also, the combination of the airbag with backpacks of different shapes and sizes, a jacket, or other equipment, is very limited.
For the deployment of the airbag, there can be an automatic triggering system or a manual or semi-automatic triggering system. The selected triggering system will depend on the application, an automatic system being more difficult to implement in the majority of cases because it necessitates the measurement of well defined parameters to define with a great level of safety the moment of triggering of the airbag. The simplest semi-automatic systems are those comprising a cord which is connected to a support and which pulls on a triggering arrangement when the user falls. However, other triggering means comprising an electronic triggering coupled to an inertia sensor (shock sensor), a remote control button, or a pressure sensor are also able to be envisaged.
In the case of avalanches, the development of the avalanche takes a certain time and the user normally has at least a few seconds for triggering his airbag. He must, nevertheless, react relatively quickly when he receives the first signs of the development of an avalanche, and must actuate the triggering of the airbag in a space of time which can be in the order of 1 to 3 seconds. In conventional airbags, it is known to have a flexible cord, with a handle at its end which the user will pull, the cord being connected to a triggering device mounted on a gas generator, which can be a bottle of compressed gas or a pyrotechnic device connected to the airbag. One of the problems of this known system, in a situation of stress or panic, is to ensure that the user can find the handle sufficiently quickly. By being attached to a flexible cord, the handle can move by the movement of the user and can be situated in an indeterminate position in its radius of movement. Another problem is the risk of unintentional triggering of the airbag if the handle hooks onto an external object, or by a false movement or false manipulation by the user, or else during the storage or stowing of the airbag system, the handle being exposed.
Known airbag systems user a gas generator coupled to a venturi system which is configured to draw exterior air which is added to the gas supplied by the gas generator to fill the inflatable bag. This system advantageously permits there to be a gas generator with reduced volume and weight for the filling of a bag having a relatively high volume, in particular 2 to 3 times the volume provided by the gas generator itself. For the good functioning of the venturi system and hence of the inflation of the back, it is important that the venturi system is exposed to the air. In known systems, the venturi system is mounted directly on the bag, the venturi system comprising a case in two parts, one part being mounted in the interior of the bag and the other on the exterior. The interface between the two parts is in the form of flanges which tightens the fabric of the airbag over the entire periphery of the hole formed in the bag for the mounting of the venturi system. Before triggering of the airbag system, the venturi is stored with the bag inside a protective cover. After triggering, and in a first stage of inflation of the bag following the gas supplied by the gas generator, the venturi system and the bag deploy outside of the cover and are exposed to the exterior air, permitting the venturi system to freely draw the air from the exterior. The venturi system is nevertheless directly exposed to the exterior and the inlet openings can be plugged by snow blocking partially or totally the aspiration of air from the exterior and causing an insufficient or partial inflation of the bag. Moreover, the part mounted on the exterior of the airbag is exposed to the shocks because it represents a protuberance which is not protected once the airbag is inflated. The manufacture of a venturi and its mounting in two parts in the interior and on the exterior of the bag is also relatively costly and weakens the bag at the level of the interface between the venturi system and the bag, leading to the risks of rupture and of leaks.
A system of percussion triggering of a bottle or cartridge of compressed gas comprises a projectile point which pierces a part of the breakable wall of the cartridge. The gas cartridge is typically screwed on the triggering device. The triggering device can have been triggered, for example by having pulled on the triggering handle, and consequently the point can be in a deployed position before mounting of a cartridge on the triggering system. If the user does not check that the triggering system is in its withdrawal position, i.e. not deployed, he can perforate the cartridge when he mounts it on the triggering device. The perforation of a gas cartridge before it is completely mounted on the triggering device is dangerous for the user, the inflation of the airbag in such a situation also being dangerous.
The known triggering systems are also relatively heavy and cumbersome. The weight and overall dimensions are important elements for all mountain equipment.
Known airbag systems offer the user the possibility of changer a part of the support via a zip fastener to modify the capacity of the support. It is, in fact, of interest to a user having an airbag system to be able to use this on supports permitting more or less equipment to be taken, or being more or less cumbersome.
Several documents state the possibility of integrating an avalanche airbag technology on several types of supports. It is known to adapt an airbag system on varied supports on manufacture or to produce a support which can be modifiable. The complex part of the operation, namely the fixing of the airbag system on the main support, is carried out by the manufacturer who can manage this operation requiring qualified employees. The airbag systems on the market typically require more than 30 minutes of monitoring and manipulation to assemble and check the good assembly of the support and of the airbag system. These systems are not suitable for a manipulation by the user.